Newly Discovered Active Fault (Image 1)

Newly Discovered Active Fault (Image 1) This old fortress in Dubrovnik, Croatia, sits on top of an Eocene thrust fault, visible in this photo (the diagonal line going up the side of the hill). The newly identified fault, which runs under the Adriatic Sea, is actively building more of the Dalmatian Islands and Dinaride Mountains of Croatia, according to a new research report by Richard A. Bennett of The University of Arizona (UA) in Tucson. Geologists had previously believed that the Dalmatian Islands and the Dinaride Mountains had stopped growing 20 to 30 million years ago. From a region northwest of Dubrovnik, the new fault runs northwest at least 200 kilometers (124 miles) under the sea floor. To learn more about this research, see the UA news release, "Newly Discovered Active Fault Building New Islands Off Croatian Coast." This research was supported by National Science Foundation grants EAR 04-41965, EAR 04-47117 and EAR 05-38036. (Date of Image: October 2007) [Image 1 of 4 related images. See Image 2.]